Synopsis: Quin Flint is
unimpressed when his gorgeous colleague, Rob Paget, asks for extra time off at
Christmas. As far as Quin is concerned, Christmas is a giant waste of time.
Quin's on the fast track to partnership and the season of goodwill is just
getting in the way of his next big project. But when Quin's boss, Marley,
confiscates his phone and makes him take an unscheduled day off, Quin finds
himself being forced to confront his regrets, past and present, and think about
the sort of future he really wants... and who he wants it with.

Impressions: Let me start by saying that I am a Christmas
Carol aficionado.I love the movies
and musicals, and I’m a sucker for any Scrooge-like story.I’ve also had some serious book-lust just
from judging this one by the gorgeous cover!

This was
a great holiday read, and it was all that I wanted in a take on this
classic.Quin is perfectly self absorbed
and yet so verya lone.Rob is sweet and
adorable and I loved watching Quin realize what he had been missing out on this
whole time.This story will warm you up
and the temperature drops!

Highly
Recommended- and as a bonus, this was released today! Go get it!

Synopsis: Charlie Yates is desperate. It’s
almost Christmas and his flight home from college has been delayed. For days.
Charlie promised his little sister Ava he’d be home for her first holiday
season since going into remission from leukemia. Now he’s stuck on the opposite
coast and someone else grabbed the last rental car. Someone he hasn’t even
spoken to in four years. Someone who broke his heart.

Gavin Bloomberg’s childhood
friendship with Charlie ended overnight after a day of stolen kisses. With
years of resentment between them, they don’t want to be in the same room
together, let alone a car. But for Ava’s sake, Gavin agrees to share the rental
and drive across the country together.

As they face unexpected bumps along
the road, can Charlie and Gavin pave the way to a future together?

Impressions: I loved this feel good holiday
treat!Andrews is an author I can always
count on to bring a smile to my face with her dynamic characters, and this book
was exactly what I hoped it would be!

I loved
the way Andres revealed the history between Gavin and Charlie, and I could so
easily empathize with each of them.Watching them fall (back) in love was so sweet, and incredibly sexy.

The
sexual tension and emotional tension in this book is so touching that I couldn’t
stop turning the page.Charlie is an
adorable brother and son, but Gavin really tugged at my heart strings.Watching him gather the courage that he had
lost so long ago was a joy to share with him.

I am a
holiday book junkie, but when a story transcends the holiday season then I know
I have found a keeper.This is one I
will definitely revisit when I want a Christmas and Hanukkah pick-me up!

Best Line: "…Tom was done fucking up. Was
done putting his relationship in jeopardy because he was ashamed and fearful
and hiding under the shaky leaf of his own lies as if they were rocks."

Synopsis: Five years ago, Tom Worthington
busted his ass to overcome the fear and paranoia that led him to withdraw from
the world and nearly lose his boyfriend. He never thought he’d find himself
right back there, shutting Reese out, keeping secrets again.

Reese Anders is ready to try
anything to get Tom to talk: if he can’t seduce his boyfriend with food, he’ll
get Tom to open up in bed. But even Tom’s confession that his dad is getting
out of prison soon doesn’t clear the air between them. And as the holidays
approach, intensive mentoring from a new British boss creates more
distractions, until Reese is keeping secrets of his own.

At a company Christmas party, it
only takes Tom one look at Reese’s new boss to figure out how much danger their
relationship is in. But he’s not about to let the connection that started all
those years ago at Carlisle come to an end. It’s time to deal with their
problems like adults. Face to face. Or back to front. Starting in the bedroom.

Impressions:I have loved the Off Campus series, and I jumped at the chance to review
book 5 in the series.The fact that it
was a holiday read?Buttercream icing on
a cake I was already going to eat!

It was
great to see Tom and Reese again, but my heart broke to watch Tom suffer so
mush in silence.I really liked that
this book showed Tom having made some progress in his communication issues, but
showing that this is not a quick fix.I
thought it was really respectful and realistic when looking at the way Tom had
been raised.I loved that Reese was
there for him, and this was a true development of a relationship that I already
loved.This story didn’t need any crazy
plot twists or “big misunderstandings” because what carries this read is
characters that we love and a romance that keeps growing.

I loved seeing some other familiar characters in this story, and it was great
seeing how their lives were all connected as they supported and loved each
other.

This was
a great read, and the holiday setting made it an amazing and fun pre-holiday
gem!

Best Line: “I’m a selfish
bastard.I’ve always wanted the
best.Trust me to find the most
extraordinary guy in the world.” (book 2)

Synopsis:

Book 1: Sheriff Lance Beaufort is not going to let trouble into his
town, no sir. Tucked away in the California mountains, Mad Creek has secrets to
keep, like the fact that half the town consists of ‘quickened’—dogs who have
gained the ability to become human. Descended on both sides from Border
Collies, Lance is as alert a guardian as they come.

Tim Weston is looking for a safe
haven. After learning that his boss patented all of Tim’s work on vegetable
hybrids in his own name, Tim quit his old job. A client offers him use of her
cabin in Mad Creek, and Tim sees a chance for a new start. But the shy gardener
has a way of fumbling and sounding like a liar around strangers, particularly
gorgeous alpha men like Sheriff Beaufort.

Lance’s hackles are definitely
raised by the lanky young stranger. He’s concerned about marijuana growers
moving into Mad Creek, and he’s not satisfied with the boy’s story. Lance
decides a bit of undercover work is called for. When Tim hits a beautiful black
collie with his car and adopts the dog, its love at first sight for both Tim
and Lance’s inner dog. Pretending to be a pet is about to get Sheriff Beaufort
in very hot water.

Book 2: Deputy Roman Charsguard
survived Afghanistan where he lost his best friend—his K-9 handler James. Roman
was a military dog until two years ago when he developed the ability to shift
into a human. It’s not easy to learn how to be a man. He found a place to live
in Mad Creek, a haven for the secret world of dog shifters. Finding a reason to
live has been harder. That is, until a certain human walks into the Mad Creek
Sheriff’s office and starts making trouble.

Matt Barclay has the worst luck.
First he was shot in a SWAT drug raid, then he was sent as DEA investigator to
Mad Creek, a little town in the California mountains. Matt’s job is to keep a
lookout for illegal drug farms, but nobody in the town wants him there. And
then there’s Roman, Matt’s erstwhile baby-sitter. He’s the hottest guy Matt’s
ever seen, even if he is a bit peculiar. If the town doesn’t kill him, sexual
frustration just might.

The town is counting on Roman to
prevent Matt from learning about dog shifters, Matt’s counting on Roman to be
his work partner and tell him the truth, and Roman’s trying to navigate love,
sex, and a whole lot of messy human emotions. Who knew it was so complicated to
walk like a man?

Impressions:I love Eli Easton, and I have gobbled up several of her novels and
novellas with gusto.I have to be in the
mood for a shifter book, so I wasn’t sure about these, but the pull of a new
Eli Easton book could not be stopped, so I grabbed these two and read them back
to back.I am so happy I did!

These are
not your typical shifter stories.I
loved that the shifters in these books are dog shifters (not wolf) and I found
it so adorable to see how dogs can be “quickened” into human form.

These
books have Easton’s typical humor and warm fuzzies, and I couldn’t put them
down.I loved the world building that
started and book one, and Tim was a great partner for uptight Lance.I liked Tim’s nervous, yet stubborn, persona
to bring Lance to his knees.

In book
2, I really loved both Matt and Roman.Ro, so recently quickened, has so much to learn about human life and
human sexuality.Add in his developing
feels for Matt, and Matt’s for him, this was an adorable love to watch!

The
outline of these stories allows for such a unique and endearing GFY
development.I love these two stories
and I hope there will be more to come!Don’t let these pass you by, even if you aren’t always a shifter
fan!(If you ARE a shifter fan, you are
probably reading them right now!)

Net

About This Blog

We're Audra and Danielle (Pagecrusherz), two queer, Boston-based readers of romance novels and erotica. Straight, queer, contemporary, historic -- if it's sexy, we love it! Learn more about us and how to send us review requests.

The Watch and Ward Society formed at the end of the 19th century and operated in Boston to "suppress vice" in literature and the performing arts. It led to works being labeled with "Banned in Boston." Our Watch and Word Society looks for books dripping with vice so we can share them with you! The highest rating we can bestow is our own "Banned in Boston" list, bringing the most romantic, salacious, and titillating books right to you!